mindyemt08

Spoke to my Dr and he wants me to drink hot water for a few hours. I have had a band for 3 years, and I dont think that even if swelling lessens, that I will be able to eat the minimum amount of food.

I am kind of feeling the same. I just got a fill for the first time in over a year. I literally just got it about 2 hours ago. But Water isn't going down well and I almost feel like I have heartburn. I know it is really soon after my fill, but it is a really uncomfortable feeling for drinking just a little bit of liquid. And I NEVER get heartburn. I also keep burping a little and the water comes like halfway up but goes back down. HELP!

Does anyone use the Weight Loss Surgical Center in KC? I am thinking about going there for my fills.

I am 1 year post-op and a new problem I have been experiencing is pain (more like soreness) at my port site. Most noticably after eating for maybe an hour or two. It's nothing excruciating or anything, but I have never had it before. Just curious wether anyone ese had the same problem. The only thing I could think it would be is the heaviness of my food sitting in the pouch tugging on it, making it sore but I don't even know if that is something that even happens or something I just made up in my head. I can tell you that everything has checked out fine when they have looked inside when they use flouroscopy and there is no twisting or bending or anything. Had a slight unfil about 2 weeks ago and there is no redness, irritation or swelling where they injected me to take out the fluid so I am pretty sure it's not infection. It feels more like the muscle is sore. And it does go away an hour or two after eating. If anyone else has felt this or knows what it is, I would greatly appreciate your input. Thanks so much.

I got a fill last Wednesday. I am confident that the swelling has went down in the last 5 days. My problem is that ALL food IS PAINFUL. It feels like everything is getting stuck. If anything sits in my pouch it hurts. I can feel everything go down. It not just uncomfortable, it is painful. I am being very conscious when taking my bites and chewing very, very well. Things that are very soft like ramen noodles and hamburger do not go down smoothly. It also feels like there is trapped air in my stomach and when the food goes through the stoma, the air is finally let out. The pain can lasts anywhere from 15 seconds to 3-4 minutes. Does this mean I am too tight? HELP! Sometimes, if I wait 3-4 minutes in between bites I don't get the pain but it seems pretty unreasonable to have to wait that long! Any suggestions, opinions or advice will help. P.S. 3cc's total in my band and 4 cc's is allowed.

I take 2 flinstone gummies at my dr.'s recommendation. They taste great and go down easy.

It would help if you could clarify your previous complications. Were they life-threatening or likely to occur again? If so, then he has legitimate concerns. Has he been to the doctor with you and discussed it with him? Im assuming your doc thinks the benefits outweigh the risks or he would have denied you as a patient. I do think it is important to establish wether or not your husband's concerns are reasonable or not. And why he would wait until 2 weeks before surgery to ask you to cancel has got to be just heartbreaking for you to hear. In my humble opinion, it sounds to me like he has researched all of the negative things about the band. If you want to convince him you will "most likely" be just fine, I would just research the opposing argument. For instance, I believe the hair loss side-effect occurs mostly with bypass patients. You absorb all of your caloric intake as a bandster, you just eat less. Most of us take a multi-vitamin to supplement as well. PB'ing is something that most bandsters master with experience. It can be painful but usually resolves pretty quickly and is usually is our own fault such as drinking with meals, big bites or not chewing well. Of course if you are too tight it can happen more often but you will usually know within a few days and get a little fluid taken out. And so on, and so on. As for the "wait three months" request. Not any of those 3 things are likely to change. Your complication percentage will neither go up nor down. You will most likely not be successful in losing and keeping off weight, AND all of the side effects of being a bandster will still be there. I think the conversation you should have is wether or not you should have the surgery at all. Not wether you should have it 2/3/09 or 5/3/09. I truly hope this helps you in some way. I wouldn't give mine back even if I was offered a 200% refund. And please don't leave me hanging. Let me know how it goes. GOOD LUCK!

Well I guess my question is what exactly is the $500 for? I could see if there was a whole bunch of initial start-up evaluations that needed to be done that is time consuming, but a new band patient is pretty cut and dry unless you have band complications or lengthy medical problems. It seems to me like you would be paying $500 just for the priveledge of being one of his patients. I would think a good doc would waive that fee just for the addition of a new patient that brings him income. Have you ever paid that kind of $$ when searching for a new PCP? But I guess the convenience of his location would be very important to me as well. And you seem impressed with your dealings with him so far which says alot. I was just playing devil's advocate for argument's sake. Best of luck to ya.

I am about 1 year post-op. I had a fill about 6 weeks ago and was too tight, so I had .3 cc's taken out 1 week ago and food is going down just fine. But a new problem I have been experiencing is pain (more like soreness) at my port site. Most noticably after eating for maybe an hour or two. It's nothing excruciating or anything, but I have never had it before. Just curious wether anyone ese had the same problem. The only thing I could think it would be is the heaviness of my food sitting in the pouch tugging on it, making it sore but I don't even know if that is something that even happens or something I just made up in my head. I can tell you that everything has checked out when they have looked inside me when they use flouroscopy and there is no twisting or bending or anything. Also, there is no redness, irritation or swelling where they injected me to take out the fluid so I am pretty sure it's not infection. It feels more like the muscle is sore. If anyone else has felt this and knows what it is, I would greatly appreciate your input. Thanks so much.

It's funny to me how everyone is so different in where their ports are placed. Mine is about an inch below my left rib. I have heard they used to put them right in the middle of the breast but down several inches, but after people lost alot of weight, it began to show. Hope this helps!

I am about 1 year post-op. I had a fill about 6 weeks ago and was too tight, so I had .3 cc's taken out 1 week ago and food is going down just fine. But a new problem I have been experiencing is pain (more like soreness) at my port site. Most noticably after eating for maybe an hour or two. It's nothing excruciating or anything, but I have never had it before. Just curious wether anyone ese had the same problem. The only thing I could think it would be is the heaviness of my food sitting in the pouch tugging on it, making it sore but I don't even know if that is something that even happens or something I just made up in my head. I can tell you that everything has checked out when they have looked inside me when they use flouroscopy and there is no twisting or bending or anything. Also, there is no redness, irritation or swelling where they injected me to take out the fluid so I am pretty sure it's not infection. It feels more like the muscle is sore. If anyone else has felt this and knows what it is, I would greatly appreciate your input. Thanks so much.

I got a slight unfill yesterday because I was having problems eating where "everything" got stuck so I thought maybe I was too tight. The doctor agreed so he took .3 cc's out. Everything has been going down perfectly since then, but almost immediately after my unfill, I had a lump feeling in my chest. It kind of feels like a pill or bubblegum is stuck but I hadn't eaten anything. This feeling has been there non-stop for about 24 hours. I am positive there is nothing stuck. It's not really painful but it is uncomfortable. I don't know what it is. It is right between the middle of my breasts and my throat. Has anyone else felt this or does anyone know why it is there? Thanks so much.

Well, I didn't feel the lump until 15-20 minutes after I left the doc's office. I thought maybe it would go away. Since I felt it all day today, I decided to call her. She said it was where fluid/food was sitting in the band. I told her that it was quite a bit higher than that and I have never felt it before. So she said if everything is going down fine, then it is something non-band related and I need to see my PCP. But I am sure this is related to it. I mean, what else could it be immediately after seeing her?

When I was on my liquid stage pre-op, I would have bartered with the devil just to be able to have some mashed potatoes or eggs. I said to myself 'I would just be in heaven if I could eat those things'. Now that I am in that stage, my mind is not as content with these things and I want stuff like cheescake (you know cuz it's mushy). Obviously that is a bad idea cuz of sugar and stuff, but why am I not as content now as I was then. I just wanna take, take, take. I just wish I was happy that I am allowed those things now. Am I unreasonable?

I got my 2nd fill yesterday. I have a total of 3cc's in my band. (only 4 cc's allowed). I am having a hard time even drinking liquids. I wasn't sure if I was having a hard time due to swelling or maybe I am just not used to what restriction should feel like. One minute I have problems with eating yogurt, oatmeal or drinking water and then a hour later it goes down just fine. I know that food should stay in the pouch but if anything sits in there it is uncomfortable and like there is a weight on my chest. Is this normal? I was wondering if this is common for others and whether or not I am just feeling this because my fill was so recent and was wodnering if it would stop after swelling went down. Any advice is appreciated.

I just purchased a "Complete Body Cleansing Program" from GNC. I guess it is supposed to completely cleanse your body. I have heard that people feel great afterwards. My problem is that I didn't realize that there is also a 7 day diet that you are supposed to follow with it and it is horrible. I don't think many people at all could do it. It consists of things like rice milk. Has anyone done it, ate normally and felt a difference? Is it a total waste of money if you don't follow the diet? Thanks

I am 2 months post op and have no problems with crushing my pills and drinking them with coffee. However, I purchased a "Complete Body Cleansing Program" and the pill taste is HORRIBLE. You have no idea. They are also of course big horse pills. Would these be safe to swallow whole? Thanks a bunch!

I am so frustrated. I was banded 1/10/08. Lost great at first (liquid diet who wouldn't?) but have been halted ever since. Just like everyone else, I have done many, many diets in the past with MUCH success. Keeping the weight off was impossible or I wouldn't be here. My body has always been really responsive to any diet I do and I would usually lose 1/2 pound a day pretty much with NO EXCEPTIONS so long as I stayed on the diet without cheating. My problem is, I am not losing weight on any of these diets right now. The best and easiest for me to stay on is either the atkins or the south beach diet. Both high Protein, low carb. Why would my body not respond to these now? The last time I was on these diets wasn't too long before surgery so I don't think getting older has anything to do with it. Also, even if my body did change I would think that I would still lose weight but not as quickly, but I have had no weight loss in over a month. What do you guys think this would be from? Staying on a diet is hard, but seeing results keeps you going. I am finding myself wanting to cheat more and more since I am not seeing any results and God knows I don't want to fall back into that trap. PLEASE HELP! Thanks so much guys.

Okay, I know I need to start exercising and I have a plan for that, but I have always lost without it. Even with no restriction, I should still be losing just like before, right?

I am trying to figure out what exactly is going on with me. My band holds 4 cc's. I had my first fill and got 2 cc's put in. I had no problems. I got 1 cc put in with my second fill. After this I couldn't eat ANYTHING. Even soft things like scrambled eggs got stuck. I got .5 cc's taken out a few days ago and feel so much better. My problem is that everything seems to go down really well. I find myself even eating a little more quickly than when I just had 2 cc's in my band (2.5 cc's currently). Does this mean that they removed too much with my unfill and I need another small fill? I am just wondering why it is easier to eat more quickly now than before. Also, I couldn't eat with 3 cc's in my band but is it possible that I was just filled too fast and 3 might be my sweet spot but I was just filled too quickly? Im so confused. Any input would be great. Thanks

I thought almost immediately that I might be too tight but several people suggested that I wait and see if swelling goes down and if food went down better. I waited 5 days and was so hungry I called my doc and he said come in right away. I left work immediately and there were instant results. I ate immediately after leaving with no problems. Now I am wondering if I am too loose. You should check with your doc about how long you have to come in with no charge. Sometimes it is 1 week and sometimes 2. You just want to make sure that you go in within that time period. Best of luck to you!

I don't want to tell you to do something your doctor doesn't recommend but my doctor said if it doesn't hurt or cause you discomfort go ahead and eat it. Within reason though. Hamburger, mashed potatoes, soft veggies, tuna, scrambled eggs, fish etc... were all considered mushies even though they are not literally mushy like mashed potatoes are. I think if you eat it in moderation and choose healthily you should be fine. No STEAK! LOL. I have had no problems eating at all and I was banded 1/10/08. Some people will not agree with me though. Good luck to ya. Any real food tastes amazing after a liquid diet.

I have heard that you have to be at your BMI for 5+ years and have to prove that through Dr. records. You can't just gain a little weight and get an approval. That's what I have heard.

My body responds very well to dieting. I have always been able to lose weight with a high protein low carb diet but I have not been able to lose anything in over a week. My diet consists of eggs, tuna, and salmon. All very high protein. I am not snacking in between with sugary foods of anything. HELP! I lost weight with this for the first few weeks but not in the last week. Any suggestions as to why? Thanks

Pain? So minimal and only lasts a couple of days. Gas pains are the worst. You WILL NOT have months of pain. PLEASE don't let the post-op pain discourage you.